Council talks maintenance, ballot

Monday

Jun 23, 2014 at 9:51 AMJun 23, 2014 at 9:52 AM

By Matthew Maneval@mttmanevalHDNJONESVILLE — Wednesday night, the Village of Jonesville made a budget adjustment for the replacement of interior and exterior lighting fixtures at several of the village’s buildings.The new energy efficient lighting replacements are projected to reduce annual operating expenses by nearly $2,000. After a reimbursement from Consumers Energy, the net cost to the village will be $4,122.67. The investment has a payback period of two years. Fixtures will be replaced at the Police Department, Fire Department, Meeting Room and Truck Bay, and the Department of Public Works.In a discussion item the council decided it would not take an official position in regard to Personal Property Tax Reform. The Michigan Municipal League has asked its member communities to pass a resolution in support of the August ballot’s Proposal 1.“It satisfies the concerns of a lot of different organizations,” said village manager Jeffrey Gray. “If it goes down there’s going to be another debate in Lansing.”The Michigan Farm Bureau, the Michigan Chamber of Commerce and the Michigan Manufacturers Association are among the organizations which have already taken public stances on the proposition.“This is a controversial issue,” said council president Bob Snow. “The village may be losing some money as a result of this proposition that perhaps may be replaced and perhaps not. We’ve been told there’s no guarantees.”Gray said that despite concurrence amongst other organizations it doesn’t necessarily mean the council has to take official action.In an information item, Gray informed the council of upcoming work that will be needed in regards to computer servers, desktop computers and an update to the village website.“We did budget in this budget year for an upgrade to our village website,” said Gray, “We budgeted $1,500 for that.”The council hopes to be ready to move forward in July with I.T. Right. I.T. Right’s website states it is Michigan’s leading network consultants for local government, offering information technology solutions. The update should ultimately make navigation and access to information more convenient.In regards to the Heritage Lane Project, Michigan State Housing Development Authority has officially issued the tax credits for the Heritage Lane Project. Gray stated that according to MSHDA the typical time frame at this point is about 8 to 12 months before construction begins.“We’ve finally managed to see this thing over the goal line a little bit,” said Gray. “There’s obviously a lot of work before the project is done but we have the financing piece in place to help get that building revitalized."In regards to a meeting with Fayette Township, Gray said that things are off to a positive start and he had a productive conversation. There is talk of a “cemetery authority” being implemented in order to give both communities some discretion. A motion was made to continue conversations leading up to the August decision.The July Council meeting has been rescheduled for July 30.

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